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Cantillon Iris

Percentile
96
overall
Brewed by Cantillon
Style: Lambic - Unblended

Brussels, Belgium

bottled
common

on tap
available

Broad Distribution
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RatingsAverageScoreABVStyle PctlServe in
5973.76/5.03.75/5.05%90.6Flute, Tumbler
Commercial Description:
The Cantillon brewery is closely linked to Brussels, a city which has the iris as its symbol. As the name indicates, the "marsh iris" is a plant growing in humid areas. The historical center of Brussels is built on swamps where this flower used to grow abundantly.
In 1998, the Brussels Museum of the Gueuze celebrated its 20th anniversary. The Cantillon brewery decided to make a new spontaneous fermentation beer for this occasion, named after this symbolic flower.
It is a completely original beer which, contrary to the other products of the Brewery, is not brewed with 35% of wheat. The Iris, which is only made with malt of the pale ale type (giving a more amber colour to the beer) conserves the typical flavour of the spontaneous fermentation, the complex aromas and the vinous taste.
The hopping is different too. Lambic is made with 100% dried hops, for the Iris we use 50% of dried hops and 50% of fresh hops. The latter cause a superb acidity, the former, due to their tannins, enable to conserve the beer while preserving all its qualities.
After two years in the barrel, the Iris undergoes a second fresh hopping two weeks before the bottling. A linen bag, filled with hops, is soaked in the beer for two weeks. This technique, called "cold hopping", gives the beer a more intense savour and makes the smell and the taste more bitter.
 Most Recent Top Raters Highest Ratings Who's Rated This?  
 Skyview (4018), Papoose Jct., Minnesota, USA
3.9 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/103/58/104/516/20
Feb 14, 2008  
Sampled a 2004 vintage via 750 ml bottle at Cellar’s Wine & Spirits’ Wednesday evening tasting, and shared by brewfiend. Pours a hazy reddish amber brew with a thick fizzy off-white head that quickly dissipates to a thin ring. Aroma of strong barnyard yeast funk, tart dark fruits, a touch of lemon, and tart peach. Taste is extreme spritzy, medium bodied, with flavors of tart dark fruit, a touch of peach, and some dry yeast. Finish is semi-dry, tart fruit with a light aftertaste of lemon and peach.


 Stine (1380), St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
4.1 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/104/58/104/517/20
Feb 14, 2008  
Poured from a 750 ml bottle, generously opened by the Cellars team. Cloudy body of a burnt red color. Sharp, tangy aroma is a bewilderment of funk and oddity; balsamic vinegar, raw lemon juice and the most fire like of red peppers force a searing sour heat. Field grass, solvent and used band aid, and some zested citrus underneath. Wild. Taste is more of the same, with lots of punchy acetic and lactic acid, raw spice and wood, and animal stink. Palate is jagged and bright, with sparkly effervescence and a burning acidity on the back end; a flame of lime juice and wooden dryness. Even for lambic, this is a shocking experience, as being left cold and naked in the violent wilderness. Intense, imposing and truly visceral; awesome. Makes you feel alive.


 pintsize (1042), Austin, Texas, USA
2.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/103/56/102/511/20
Feb 9, 2008    Updated: Feb 14, 2008
2-3-08 bottle shared at tasting
Yellow orange color with little head. Sour orange smell with some funkiness in there as well. Fruity smell and flavor. Smell is actually nice. It has a tart, almost watery flavor and a thin and watery palate. Nothing too fantastic here for a Lambic.


 jacobwennbom (274), Uppsala, Sweden
3 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/103/55/102/514/20
Feb 9, 2008  
Hazy and golden with almost no head. Very dry, and also with a significant bitterness to it. Grassy aromatic notes, almost like the dry leaves you can find in end of the summer. The smell is very "out doors". Lots and lots of acidity. I have a hard time making up my mind whether I like this or not.


 GaltScat (195), Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
4.4 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/105/58/105/518/20
Feb 7, 2008  
2007 Bottle experienced at Cantillon itself. Floral hops punctuate the tart, highly woody, vinous and cider bouquet. The pour is almost headless, of a rusty golden tone. A fair bitterness adds a dimension to the already interesting beer, pushing the dryness even further. I imagine the sour, but not aggressively so, nature contributes to the overall balance with the aromatic hops. Medium bodied, tart, moderately high carbonation. The result is a pleasant experiment with powerful wood flavors and magical unexplainable moments. Another wonderful offering from Cantillon.


 xnoxhatex (1305), Grand Rapids/Chicago, Michigan, USA
3.5 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/103/57/103/514/20
Feb 7, 2008  
Vintage 2004 (bottled 2006 according to the cap) from West Lakeview Liquours, Chicago. Hazy dull orange with slim beige head. Aroma is funky not a fresh funky but kind of older and earthier, a little sour, and bitter/acidic quality. Earthy tartness like cranberries or sour fruit is the first flavor that hits my tongue with lemon and other citrus, grapefruit, off-dry. Medium to and surpringly creamy tartness. Nice, but I feel that it is missing something.


 lb4lb (2011), Austin, Texas, USA
2.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/55/102/510/20
Feb 4, 2008  
Bottle shared by gueuzelover. Pours a cloudy orange dull color with a spritzy, non-lasting white head. Smell is sour peach, funky barnyard and fruity. Flavor was exceptionally dry to me, with almost no sweetness, and a light sour vinegary character and bland fruity notes than need a little more sweetness to make them pop. Honestly not too impressive flavorwise for me, with a thin dry unsweetened apricot or peach sourness. Unique and while not bad, didn’t wow me with its dullness of flavors, complex as they were.


 oreogobbler (217), Austin, Texas, USA
4.2 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
9/104/58/103/518/20
Feb 4, 2008  
Musky, hay, yeast, and apricot aroma. Light yellow, cloudy a lot of sediment , no head. Tart sweet to sour acidic fruit flavor. Dry hop finish. Smooth Palate.



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